BI reshuffles 430 personnel at NAIA

More than 430 Bureau of Immigration (BI) officers at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) were reshuffled and given new terminal assignments as part of the agency’s effort to prevent corruption among its personnel at the country’s premiere port.

BI Commissioner Jaime Morente said a total of 356 fronltine immigration officers currently assigned at the NAIA were affected by the terminal rotation scheme which will be implemented on May 12.

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Morente bared that the BI reshuffle is part of the ongoing initiatives of the agency to cleanse and reorganize its ranks.

It was learned that aside from BI officers manning the NAIA’s immigration booths, the terminal assignments of 79 immigration supervisors were also changed as part of the reshuffle.

“The objective of this rotation scheme is to avoid fraternization in the workplace, which studies have pinpointed as a possible source of corruption in government,” the Morente said.

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BI reshuffles 430 personnel at NAIA

Atty. Carlos Capulong, BI Port Operations Division (POD) chief, said the reshuffle also aims to ensure that sufficient manpower is available to serve the traveling public based on the volume of flights and passengers in a particular terminal.

“We also want to create a positive work environment by seeing to it that the workload of our immigration officers and their duty supervisors are evenly distributed,” Capulong said.

He added that transferring the said personnel to a different workplace and setting would help enhance their knowledge and skills as border control officers of the country.

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Capulong disclosed that Morente already approved his recommendation to rotate the terminal assignments of BI-NAIA personnel every 3 or 4 months.

“With more than half of our personnel already inoculated with the first dose, we have more confidence in performing our daily duties,” said Capulong.

Meanwhile, BI reminded different airlines to ensure that only foreigners currently allowed to enter the country are permitted to board their flights bound for the Philippines.

“We reiterate that only foreigners with valid and existing visas are allowed to enter the country. The entry of foreign tourists is still temporarily restricted,” Morente said.

Source: Bureau of Immigration, Republic of the Philippines